Two justices that blocked the state Supreme Court from the supermajority needed to overturn the ban said there was no constitutional right to perform abortions.
The federal government cannot withhold Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood for at least the next two weeks, after a district court judge issued a temporary restraining order.
Montana came up short at the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday in its bid to revive a parental consent law for abortion access, but some conservative justices suggested taking up the issue in a different case.
A bill that would ask voters to vote on a constitutional amendment to define personhood as starting at conception sparked contentious debate in the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday.
A state district court judge has ruled that two bills which would make abortions more complicated or illegal in Montana are unconstitutional and has ordered them stricken from the books.
In November, Montana voters safeguarded the right to abortion in the state’s constitution. They also elected a new chief justice to the Montana Supreme Court who was endorsed by anti-abortion advocates.